


Cold Turkey

by nerdcredred, Ocelot_l



Series: Lifetimes [11]
Category: Atop the Fourth Wall, That Guy with the Glasses/Channel Awesome
Genre: M/M, References to Drug Use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-01
Updated: 2013-11-01
Packaged: 2017-12-31 04:16:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 21,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1027126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nerdcredred/pseuds/nerdcredred, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ocelot_l/pseuds/Ocelot_l
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dan makes the most important decision of his life and 90s Kid is there to help him through it. However, an addiction is a hard thing to overcome and the process can leave a person, and a relationship, broken. Are these two destined to succumb to such a fate, or will their love find a way to survive?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> All works can also be found at my LiveJournal page at http://bookishlady242.livejournal.com/
> 
> Written for the Secret Treehouse 2013 TGWTG Big Bang. Bonus content for the fic can be found at my LJ account.
> 
> We do not own these characters nor the people who portray these characters. This is meant as a work of fiction and is fair use. "Cold Turkey" is performed by John Lennon. "Take On Me" is performed by A-Ha.

Dan stared at the small, white envelope he’d been holding for the past two hours. Once upon a time, he’d been a man who didn’t know the meaning of the word fear, a man who would head out into the seediest parts of town during the darkest of nights searching for a good time and laughing at the prospect of anything ever actually hurting him. Once upon a time Dan had never known what it was like to feel scared, nor any emotion really, other than the fleeting euphoria a few lines of coke and a quick fuck from the nearest warm body brought him. Those days had long since ended. Today, Dan was for the first time in his life truly terrified of what might be contained within that envelope.  
Dan shifted around on his bed again, trying to get comfortable even though he couldn’t stop his hands from shaking. In an attempt to calm down, he closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths while spinning the envelope around in his fingers as if it were a toy and not the object that might blow his life apart with a few simple words. No matter how much he tried to tell himself that everything would be alright, that the world wouldn’t end upon reading those few simple words printed upon professional letterhead, Dan couldn’t bring himself to believe that. He was afraid, so very afraid about how his life might change after opening this envelope. Dan quickly realized that fear was an emotion he utterly loathed.

Eventually reaching the point where he felt he might go mad if he stared at the envelope any longer, Dan slammed it onto the bed before pulling open a drawer and rummaging urgently through it.

“Come on, come on," he muttered in an almost deranged voice. "I know it's in here." He threw several knick-knacks and trinkets onto the floor as he searched for it, the white powder that never failed to set him at ease. That sweet, snowy creation of the gods (or perhaps the devil) had always done wonders for calming Dan down and improving his mood, not to mention facilitating many a wild and crazy party back in the 80s if Dan remembered correctly. Well, honestly most of these remembrances teased the outer reaches of Dan’s memory while refusing to present themselves clearly to the man, but he was pretty certain he could recall staying out all night in the strangest houses and bars, enjoying life with people he barely remembered the names and faces of, and generally having fun. A lot of fun. Too much fun if Dan were again honest. He knew he’d been too blasted out of his head from coke back then to fully understand what he’d been doing, or who he’d been doing or getting done by. Dan also knew all too well that thanks to his drug habit, he’d rarely bothered to worry about using any sort of protection during that time, which is why he felt like his life was about to be destroyed by a tiny 3 ½-by-6 inch paper container.

Even though this knowledge flooded Dan with guilt as he searched more and more desperately for his stash, his craving for cocaine was sadly stronger, and he only rummaged faster until he found what he was looking for. Dan laughed triumphantly when at last his fingertips came into contact with the baggie he’d been storing in the nightstand, but the sound died on his lips when the process of pulling it out caused him to knock the picture he kept proudly displayed on the night table right onto the floor.

“Kid! I’m so sorry!” Dan dropped the baggie at once as he bent down to retrieve his beloved picture. He smiled warmly as he gazed upon the sweet, innocent face of his boyfriend before hugging the picture tightly to his chest, as he often did when 90s Kid wasn’t around to hug in person. As he did, the waves of guilt drowned out his cravings, and Dan was overcome with feelings of shame and disgust for what he’d been about to do.

He didn’t want to be the same coked up weirdo who was so out of his mind he’d been arrested four times without even realizing it until he’d woken up in a cell. He didn’t want to sell even more of his 80s collectibles so he’d have enough cash to feed his addiction, or spend endless nights cruising down the desolate city back roads looking for places to score. Dan wanted to change his lifestyle for the better. There was something at stake now, someone Dan could lose for good if he didn’t learn to control himself.

Ever since he’d started dating 90s Kid, Dan had found himself feeling happy, and not the phony happiness that a new hit of coke could bring him, but honest to goodness joy at being alive. At being able to talk to 90s Kid about whatever was on his mind and knowing that no matter what he said, the teen wouldn’t think he was an annoying waste of space who’d be better off back in the 80s. At being able to listen in turn to 90s Kid’s hopes and concerns, and offer sympathy and support that was genuinely wanted and appreciated by the younger man. At being needed, cared for, and unconditionally loved by someone for the first time in his life.

90s Kid loved Dan and Dan loved 90s Kid. Dan loved him so much that sometimes he’d wake up in the middle of the night overwhelmed with the need to hear his voice, so he’d turn on one of Linkara’s reviews where the teen made a cameo and watch it over and over again until he drifted off to sleep. Dan loved him so much that he was saving over half of the profits he made from his memorabilia sales not for drugs, but in a special account at the bank which would one day pay for the house he and 90s Kid would own. He loved him so much that he would do anything for 90s Kid, even give up his own life if it would ensure the younger man’s safety and happiness.

Dan also loved 90s Kid enough to want a physical relationship with him. While they were moving slowly, certainly much slower than in any other sexual relationship Dan had been a part of, he was enjoying it more than before, mostly because he knew 90s Kid was enjoying it as much as he was, and partly because he could remember everything that was happening this time. Nevertheless, they had gotten serious about sex and even though they’d experimented a little with different ways of expressing their love, Dan had decided he would get himself tested before going all the way with 90s Kid. Sometimes he did feel guilty about going as far as they had when Dan wasn’t sure about the condition of his health, and it was a risk he knew he didn’t want to take again. Dan would never forgive himself if he got the love of his life sick because of his past mistakes.

Dan set the picture back onto his nightstand and looked back at the envelope lying so innocently across his bedspread, taunting him to open it. “Oh, that’s it! I can’t take it anymore!” Dan took a deep breath and finally tore the thing open. He pulled out the contents with trembling fingers and scanned it quickly, hoping that if it were bad news, he wouldn’t have to look at it for too long. Dan exhaled when the results were clear to him and he immediately lay back down upon his bed. He stared up at the ceiling for a moment, as if in a daze, before he sat back up and reached for his phone.

\-----

“Dude! Dude, jump!”

“I’m frigging trying to jump!”

“No, not that way! Jump, like, over there!”

“This stupid jump button isn’t working!”

“Dude, give it to me, I’ll do it.”

“No! I can do it, just give me a – damn it!”

“Wow. That was an awesome death, dude.”

“Shut up, 90s Kid.”

“Play nice, you two. Or am I gonna have to separate you?”

Linkara turned around to glare at Harvey, who was snickering from behind his magazine as he reclined on the couch.

“You’re going to have to separate my foot from your ass if you don’t watch it, Finevoice.”

“Gross. I hate when you two, like, flirt in front of me and stuff,” 90s Kid muttered as he reached to take the controller from Linkara’s lap.

“What? I wasn’t – that was not flirting!” Linkara sputtered, his face growing magnificently red. “Harvey, tell him that wasn’t – why are you looking at me like that!”

Harvey shrugged and continued to stroke his chin, a small smile playing at his lips. “Sorry, Kid. You know how my mind works – you say something interesting, I gotta consider it. That was a particularly vivid visual image, after all.”  
“Harvey!”

“Extremely gross,” 90s Kid said with a shudder. The chorus of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” suddenly blasted across the living room, alerting 90s Kid that he had a phone call. He fumbled in his pocket for his phone before getting up and walking to the corner of the room to answer.

“Hello? Hey, Dan, what’s up?” Linkara took this opportunity to engage in a whispered argument with Harvey about inappropriate things to joke about in front of the team’s youngest member, but they ended up stopping when 90s Kid’s lack of indoor voice made it impossible not to overhear his end of the conversation.

“Dude, you did? Wow, that’s totally… wow. Oh man, that’s just, like, extremely… so yeah, uh huh, I get it. So, what did it say?” The surprising graveness of 90s Kid’s tone couldn’t help but be intriguing to the accidental eavesdroppers, though they tried to keep their faces neutral.

“Uh huh... uh huh… oh, dude… so, it’s good then? You’re totally okay and everything?” Linkara and Harvey exchanged confused and somewhat concerned glances but they managed to restrain themselves from turning around and listening directly to 90s Kid’s conversation. “Oh, that’s so awesome! I’m totally happy! This is like the best news – huh? Yeah, Snowflame’s around. I can totally get him to come over, but what do you want to see him for?”

There was a long pause then where 90s Kid listened intently to whatever Dan was telling him without replying. After three minutes passed, Linkara grew so anxious to know what he was saying that he chanced standing up and peering over the edge of the couch to try and gauge 90s Kid’s expression. Luckily, Harvey pulled him back down just as the teen turned around, his expression now determined. “Okay, dude. I totally get it. Don’t worry, cuz I’m totally gonna be there. I’m new at this, but I’ll do my best with it all. I’ll get ready tonight and come get you tomorrow, okay?” Another pause before 90s Kid smiled. “I love you too, dude. It’s gonna be okay. Okay, bye.”

90s Kid pocketed his phone and walked back into the living room, not noticing how Harvey’s magazine was now upside down or how Linkara was biting his thumb to keep himself from asking any questions.

“Dudes, I was just talking to Dan,” 90s Kid said, as if that weren’t obvious.

“Oh, really?” Harvey quickly put down his magazine and gave a casual look. “And how is Crockett doing?”

“He’s awesome. Really awesome. So awesome that he wants me to, like, come and stay at his place for a while, so I was thinking it would be cool if I could do that?” 90s Kid asked, his smile growing hopeful.

Linkara frowned. “Oh, 90s Kid, I don’t know. You know how much we need you around here.”

“Well duh, of course you need me,” 90s Kid said, still smiling. “But you need me the most for fixing guns and stuff, right? So I figured since that braid-guy isn’t our enemy anymore and we don’t have to fight or junk right now, it’d be okay if I went, right?”

“How long you planning to stay, Junior?” Harvey asked, shooting Linkara a look that indicated he should stay calm.

90s Kid shrugged and looked down. “Um, I dunno. A couple weeks or so. But I’ll totally have my communicator and my teleporter, so I can come back if there’s an emergency or something. Please?” 90s Kid looked back up and clasped his hands together. “It’d really mean a lot to me and Dan if I could go.”

“Since we’re all taking a bit of a snoozer around here, it’s not a problem for me,” Harvey said, patently ignoring the glare Linkara was giving him. “And I’m pretty sure the Kid doesn’t have a problem either, right?”

“I suppose I don’t,” Linkara said through clenched teeth.

“Thanks so much, dudes!” 90s Kid cried before rushing over to hug each of them. “I’m totally stoked about this! Oh man, I have so much to do! I’ve gotta get my stuff together and pack and – oh! Linksano-dude! He’s totally who I have to talk to! Okay, I’ve gotta boogie now, but Dan and I will be here to say bye to you tomorrow! So later, dudes!”

90s Kid hurried off in the direction of Linksano’s lab. Once he was gone, Linkara turned his glare up to maximum power.

“How could you let him go like that?” he demanded of the singer. “I know you heard the same things that I did, Harvey!”

Harvey didn’t reply as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. “I heard exactly what you did, Kid: half a conversation. I’m betting if we’d heard the other half, you wouldn’t be flipping your wig right now.”

“Harvey, he was talking about seeing Snowflame,” Linkara said hotly. “We both know there’s only one reason Dan would want to see him.”

“I disagree,” Harvey replied as he lit up and took a drag. “There’s lots of reasons Crockett might want to see him. They’re both pretty kooky, so it’s not a stretch to think they’d get along.”

“Oh come on,” Linkara said, growing more agitated with Harvey’s blasé reaction to these events by the second. “You’re not stupid, Harvey. You know the only reason that they get along is because they’re raging coke-heads! And now he wants 90s Kid to stay with him? How do we know Dan isn’t going to try to get him to start using this stuff too?”

“Do you really think Crockett would do that?” Harvey asked, looking at Linkara in surprise.

“I don’t know what he would do!” Linkara cried, throwing his hands up in the air. “You can’t predict the actions of a drug addict, Harvey!”

“I have to say this isn’t an appealing side of you, Kid,” Harvey evenly replied as he took another puff. “I know you have a habit of judging folks too easily, but I really thought you were trying not to jump to conclusions any more, Kid. Isn’t that what you said not too long ago after you ruined someone’s chances of returning to their home universe?”

“Oh, feeling sympathy for Jaeris now?” Linkara snapped, unable to control his temper any longer now that Harvey had deigned to insult him. “Have you decided to forgive him for what he put us all through, Harvey? For shooting me and trying to steal my Magic Gun? For causing me to lose my magic in the first place and go out on the quest that left all of you in danger? You feel bad for the guy who caused all that now?”

Harvey’s eyes flashed angrily as he jabbed his cigarette into the ashtray. “No, Kid,” he said softly, his tone ice cold. “I still haven’t forgiven him for any of that. I don’t know if I ever will. But I know you have. I know the guilt of him being stuck here eats you up at night when you’re tossing and turning next to me like a fish out of water. And I really don’t need any more guilt added to your conscience because you judged Crockett on half a phone conversation and some unfounded fears that he’s going to hurt Junior.”

“Unfounded?”

“Yes, Kid, unfounded. I’ve seen Crockett and Junior together enough times by now to know that he would never hurt him, and would never get him involved with drugs or anything like that. If I thought there was even a chance of that, I woulda put a stop to their relationship tout suite.”

Linkara crossed his arms, unwilling to let this go. “How can you be so sure? You’ve misjudged people in the past, Harvey. We all have. How can you just blindly trust in Dan when you know what he’s like?”

Harvey pocketed his cigarettes and stood up, facing Linkara. He was still angry, but doing his best to control himself. “That’s just it, Kid. I know what he’s like. I know what they’re both like. He isn’t a villain waiting to ensnare Junior in his mixed up world, and Junior isn’t the helpless tyke you seem to think he is. But I guess you can’t see it yet, Kid, so there’s really nothing I can say to change your mind. All I’ll say then is good night, and that I hope you come to your senses before you say something you can’t take back.”

Linkara watched as Harvey brushed past him, ascending the stairs before entering his bedroom. He scoffed at Harvey’s sudden soft spot for Dan and wondered what had happened to the sensible world-weary man he’d fallen in love with. “I’ll show him who can’t see the truth when it’s right in front of him,” he muttered as he headed up to his own room for the night. “Tomorrow I’ll prove that Dan’s up to no good.”

\-----

As 90s Kid tried to decide how many flannel jackets was too many to pack (answer: you can never have too many!), a knock on his door drew his attention. “Coming!” he shouted as he quickly tossed the clothes on top of some embarrassing pony items he didn’t want most people to know he owned. 90s Kid then opened the door and smiled as he saw Linksano, who was carrying a few books in his arms, and Boffo standing outside. “Hey! What’s up, dudes?”

“Might we come in?” Linksano asked.

“Sure!” Once they’d taken a seat on the teen’s bed, Linksano started to fidget and looked anxious.

“I, uh, hope you don’t mind me informing Boffo about what you told me earlier, 90s Kid. He just happened to have one of the books that I wanted to give you, so I thought explaining why I needed it would be helpful.”

“Oh, that’s okay,” 90s Kid said. “Me and Dan were gonna tell everyone tomorrow anyway, but I know he and Boffo are awesome friends and he wouldn’t mind you knowing early.”

Boffo smiled and honked his horn in agreement with that statement.

“Wonderful.” Linksano felt at ease again. “So, as I said previously, I’ve acquired a few books for you to peruse, 90s Kid.” He handed the thin tomes over to 90s Kid, who peered down at them uncertainly.

“Oh, wow, dude. It’s totally awesome that you got me these, but they’re, like, really… full of words. I don’t know if I’ll be able to understand all this,” he finished, looking down in quiet shame.

“What? Nonsense,” Linksano said at once while Boffo again honked in agreement. “You’re much more intelligent than your taste in music and entertainment would lead one to believe, 90s Kid. Boffo and I have every confidence that you can and will be able to comprehend what is written in these books.”

“Really?” 90s Kid blushed a bit as the two nodded before he pulled Linksano and Boffo into a group hug. “You dudes are totally the best friends ever! Thanks so much for helping us!”

“Oh! O-of course we would!” While Boffo returned the hug with ease, Linksano was still getting used to such intimate contact. Thanks to an encouraging smile from the clown, Linksano was able to briefly hug 90s Kid back before he jumped up and backed away a few steps. “Um, s-so, I also wanted to say that if you have any questions while you’re gone, 90s Kid, please feel free to call me. Or you can text Boffo if I am otherwise occupied.”

“Text?” 90s Kid asked in confusion.

“Oh right, texting wasn’t as popular in the 90s,” Linksano muttered. “I mean, you can email Boffo from Dan’s computer.”

Boffo honked that he’d be available day or night if 90s Kid needed to talk.

“I will also be available not quite that often, but during my usual lab hours,” Linksano offered. “Being the genius that I am, I have extensive knowledge on all aspects of benzoylmethylecgonine, so I can answer any questions you might have on that subject.”

“Thanks dude. I totally will ask you if I have a question.” 90s Kid looked down at the books he held once again, his face falling slightly. “I just hope… I can do this right.”

Boffo gave his shoulder a warm squeeze. “I concur,” Linksano said, offering 90s Kid a look brimming with confidence. “It’s a wonderful thing you’re doing for Dan, 90s Kid. I am certain you will be able to help him.” Cheeks still burning red, 90s Kid pulled Boffo in for one more hug, allowing Linksano the perfect opportunity to flee.


	2. Chapter 2

Dan’s face lit up when he saw 90s Kid teleport into his living room. He was carrying a suitcase so he only used one arm to wrap around his boyfriend when he pulled him down for a kiss. “I’m so glad you’re here, Kid.”

“Me too, dude. You ready to go?” Dan nodded and held even tighter to 90s Kid, who pressed the button on his teleporter once more. Instantly they found themselves standing in the living room at Linkara’s place. Linkara and Harvey, who had been silently eating breakfast together, both perked up at the appearance of Dan although only Linkara stood up to peer out of the kitchen at him.

“You don’t know how much I appreciate this, Kid,” Dan said, sounding more nervous than usual. “I never thought I’d see this day. I’m so glad you’re here with me.”

“Me too, dude.” 90s Kid bent down to peck him on the cheek. “I’d be totally lying if I said I wasn’t nervous too, but I just know it’s all gonna be awesome in the end.” Linkara’s expression grew suspicious at once and even Harvey slowed down his chewing to ponder over what they were listening to.

“So, where’s Snowflame?”

“He’s out back, dude, all ready for you.”

“Outside? Do you think that’s the best place to… I mean, won’t someone see us?”

“Nah, it’s totally private out there, Dan. You two can do whatever and no one will see, for sure.”

“O-okay, if you’re sure.”

“Positively sure. Now, I’m gonna go finish packing, okay?”

“Yeah. See you in a few minutes.” 90s Kid nodded and headed upstairs to his room. Dan sighed and gripped tightly to his luggage before walking out the back door in search of Snowflame.

“Are you going to try to tell me he isn’t buying drugs now?” Linkara whispered harshly to Harvey, who set down his spoon and looked up at him.

“There’s no way Junior would go along with that, Kid, no matter how suspicious it looks. I think we should – Kid, wait!” Harvey groaned in frustration as Linkara darted over to the backdoor and peered outside, trying in vain to see what was happening. “I just know I’m going to regret this,” he said before hurrying over to stand by Linkara’s side.

\----

Dan walked back into the base a few minutes later looking pale and somewhat sick. He ran a hand across his face and tried to calm the nervous fluttering in his chest. It was done. After years spent wondering if he would ever want to or even be able to do it, at last it was done.

Dan was about to walk toward the stairs when he felt himself being grabbed and pulled into a nearby room, which happened to be a bathroom. He yelped slightly as he was pushed into a sitting position on the thankfully lidded toilet before he stared up into the unhappy faces of Linkara and Harvey, the latter of which shut the door with a shake of his head and an even unhappier look to Linkara.

“H-hey, my friends.” Despite his confusion, Dan tried his best to sound cheerful. “What can I do for you?”

“I heard you came to see Snowflame, Dan,” Linkara said, drumming the fingers of one hand against the top of the other. Dan nodded, his confusion increasing by the minute. “And I noticed that you brought a rather large piece of luggage with you. Making some sort of transaction?”

“Oh, this.” Dan looked down at his suitcase before nodding again. “Actually, yeah, I was.”

“I knew it!” Linkara cried, looking triumphantly to Harvey, who rolled his eyes. “I also heard, Dan, that you want to take 90s Kid to your place for some reason.”

“Uh, yes, and we’re planning to tell you all about it-”

“90s Kid seems to be nervous about this visit,” Linkara interrupted, crossing his arms and glaring at the older man. “It’s almost like he’s nervous about something in particular. Something he hasn’t done before.”

Dan blinked at him before slowly nodding again. “It’s actually something that neither of us have done-”

“Aha! I knew it!”

“Would you quit cutting him off, Kid?” Harvey complained, though Linkara paid him no notice.

“You’re getting ready to introduce him to some of your white gold, aren’t you Dan? Don’t try to deny it!”

Dan’s mouth fell open and his eyes widened in shock. “What? You think I’m going to give 90s Kid… you honestly think I would do that?”

“We know you’re an addict, Dan,” Linkara hotly replied. “You’ve been hooked on that stuff for years, and now you’re desperate to drag 90s Kid down with you, right? It must be boring getting high all by yourself, huh? You want a drug buddy to keep you company and you’re choosing 90s Kid, the perfect victim! You’re gonna get him hooked on that crap and-”

“No! I would never!” Dan shouted, his ashen cheeks suddenly tinted red with anger. “I love 90s Kid! I don’t want him messed up on drugs like me! I swear I don’t! I swear on my life that I would never, EVER give anything like that to him!” Linkara suddenly grabbed the suitcase from Dan’s hands and flipped the snaps, preparing to open it.

“Then how do you explain this! Why did you just buy a whole case of cocaine from-” Linkara opened the case to reveal it was completely empty. “….Snowflame?” Linkara’s face scrunched up in bewilderment and he looked from the case to Dan several times. Dan sighed and rubbed his beard a moment before dropping his hand.

“Look, I wasn’t buying cocaine from him and I’m not giving 90s Kid drugs. I promise you both that I would never do that. I met with Snowflame so I could give him my whole stash… because I’m quitting.” Linkara stared at him, feeling more shock over this announcement than regret over what he’d accused Dan of doing, while Harvey’s expression grew sympathetic.

“I think you can give that back to him, Kid.” Linkara quickly closed the suitcase and handed it back to Dan. “Sorry about all this, Crockett.”

“It’s alright. I guess I shouldn’t have tried to keep this as quiet as I did. You’re Kid’s family, so it makes sense that you’d worry about him,” Dan said in a more forgiving tone than Harvey expected. “I was going to explain it all to you, I just wanted to get rid of my last temptation first. So, to make it clear to you, my friends, the reason I invited 90s Kid over to my place is because I’m going to be going through some serious withdrawal and he wanted to help me. Well, I wanted him to help me, because I know that I’m not strong enough to do this on my own,” Dan admitted, looking down again.

“Here.” Harvey held out his pack of cigarettes and Dan gratefully took one. Harvey lit a match for both of them to use and Linkara couldn’t help noticing that the singer was gazing at Dan somewhat oddly, though he couldn’t identify the look he wore. Linkara quickly shrugged it off, starting to feel a little doubtful of Dan’s claims.

“You really think you can just quit cold turkey like this?” he asked. “You’ve been doing drugs for years, Dan. Do you expect to just get over an addiction like that with only 90s Kid helping you? And you expect to stay off for good?”

“Kid, watch it,” Harvey warned.

Dan took a long drag of the cigarette and turned his head so he wouldn’t blow smoke in anyone’s face. “It’s okay, Harvey. He has every right to be suspicious of me. I know I’m not the most trustworthy person in your eyes and I don’t blame you for thinking that. I’ve done a lot of… let’s say crazy things in my lifetime. I probably shouldn’t even be here right now.” He chuckled dryly, causing some ash to fall onto his jeans, which he ignored. “But the fact of the matter is that I am still here. I’m still alive and I… I have a reason to live a healthy life now.”

Dan tilted his head up and Linkara was surprised to see his eyes had watered up. “90s Kid is honestly the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I never want to hurt him. I never want to make him worry about me because of this stupid habit of mine. I love him so much and I know that he doesn’t deserve this. He shouldn’t have to deal with taking care of a pathetic addict like me. That’s why I want to change. I never want to be clouded up with drugs when I’m around him. I don’t want to be poisoning myself and gambling with my life any longer, not when I actually want to start living it. I know this will sound weird, but… I want to feel like a whole person.” Dan paused and sniffled a little, his voice starting to grow heavy with emotion.

“I want to be aware of what’s happening to me. I want to remember things. I-I want to enjoy every moment I’m with Kid. That’s why I know I have to kick this addiction for good. I can’t risk hurting myself or him, I… I can’t risk l-losing him…”

Dan sniffled once more and went to wipe his eyes with his sleeve, but Harvey held out his handkerchief to use instead. “Is that everything you need?” he asked, directing the question at Linkara. Linkara’s expression grew stony but he nodded.

“Yeah.”

“Okay then.” After his handkerchief was returned, Harvey moved to open the door and the three men stepped out of the bathroom. Dan had just enough time to stub his cigarette out in an ashtray before was promptly glomped by his boyfriend.

“There you are, dude! I was looking for you everywhere! How come you were in the bathroom with Linkara and Harvey?”

“We were just having a little talk, Kid,” Dan explained as he hugged 90s Kid back. “I was telling them about why I wanted you to come stay with me.”

“Oh okay. So you dudes know about me helping Dan now, right?”

“Yeah, we know,” Linkara said, though his tone was still the slightest bit skeptical. “So, did you finish packing, 90s Kid? You got all your clothes and your communicator? What about your sleeping bag, I don’t see that down here.”

“Oh. Um, y-yeah, I totally almost f-forgot,” 90s Kid stammered, suddenly blushing. “Let me just run up and get it.” As he scrambled up the stairs, Linkara moved forward to inspect the rest of the luggage pile the teen had left in the living room.

Dan was about to follow him when Harvey patted him on the back and pulled him away into the corner for a moment. He lowered his voice so only Dan could hear. “When’s the last time you did?”

Dan looked guilty as he answered. “Yesterday morning.” Harvey nodded, seemingly not bothered by this answer, and took a drag of his cigarette.

“It’s gonna be starting soon, then. You better get on your way. If you or Junior need anything, you call me.” Dan raised his eyebrows slightly, but nodded and Harvey patted him on the back again.

“I got it!” 90s Kid jumped down from the higher stairs and landed with a loud thud at the bottom, holding his sleeping bag up triumphantly. Dan smiled and hurried over to his side.

“Is that everything you’ll be needing, Kid? Well, I’m sure that if you forgot something, you can always teleport back and pick it up.”

“Totally! I’m so ready to go, Dan.” As the two picked up 90s Kid’s luggage, Harvey walked forward and put his hand on the young man’s shoulder.

“I already told Crockett, but I’m telling you too. You need anything, you call me. Don’t forget, Junior, we’re just a button-press away.”

“Thanks, Harvey-dude. You guys are totally awesome.” 90s Kid smiled brightly at the pair as he put his luggage-laden arm around Dan and held up his teleporter. “See you dudes later!”

\-----

Once they’d arrived at Dan’s place, 90s Kid felt a tingling sensation spread through his body. Part of this was because he was alone with his boyfriend, something that rarely happened, but another part of it was fear over what was going to happen during his stay. 90s Kid had spent the better part of the previous night reading through the books Linksano had lent him and even though he hadn’t fully understood all of what he’d read, he knew that the withdrawal process was going to be difficult to live through. If the books were right, then Dan was going to be like a different person, maybe even someone who didn’t like 90s Kid. This thought scared him most, because Dan was the one person he counted on to like him no matter what. 90s Kid couldn’t shake the nagging feeling in the back of his head that kept suggesting that without the drugs in his system, Dan would find him as annoying as everyone else found him.

“You okay, sweetie? You’re looking a little worried.” Dan dropped a few bags onto the floor before taking 90s Kid’s hand and sitting with him on the couch. “Are you maybe having second thoughts about this?” he asked, his tone soft and gentle. “I’d understand if you were. This is going to be a very…intense experience, to put it lightly.”

“No, it’s not that,” 90s Kid said, shaking his head. “I totally want to help you get healthy and junk, Dan. It’s just…what if you only like me cuz of that stuff? I mean, like, what if that stuff made you think you liked me, but then without it, you realize that…you don’t like me.”

Dan’s eyes popped open so wide that 90s Kid was slightly taken aback, but he eagerly leaned into his boyfriend’s embrace when Dan pulled him close. “Kid, I promise you that won’t ever be true! I don’t love you because my mind’s clouded with drugs! I love you for you! I love your smile and your enthusiasm for life and your loyalty and your sweetness and your goodness! I love you so much that for the first time I know I don’t need drugs to get me through the day because I have you instead!”

90s Kid’s grip tightened around the smaller man just as his chest tightened with joy thanks to Dan’s words. “Yeah? You-you really mean that, Dan?”

“I’ve never meant anything more, Kid.” Dan nuzzled his cheek until he felt 90s Kid start to relax against him. “I mean, think about it this way: are you going to stop liking me if it turns out I’m a boring old weirdo without drugs?”

“No way, dude! I’d never think you were any of those things!” 90s Kid proclaimed at once.

“That’s exactly how I feel, Kid. I’d never think any less of you and I’d never feel any less in love with you,” Dan promised as he placed soft kisses along the teen’s neck. 90s Kid squirmed with delight and ran a hand through Dan’s hair. “Ohhh, that feels good,” Dan sighed, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the sensation. “Actually, I should probably take this chance to apologize.”

“Apologize? For what?”

“Not for what I have done, but… for what I might do while you’re here.” 90s Kid stilled his hand so he could glance down at Dan’s now worried expression. “I’m actually sort of afraid of what I might do,” Dan admitted, his complexion even paler than it had been at Linkara’s. “I’m not sure how much you know about this whole process, Kid, but I might say some… unpleasant things when my body’s trying to adjust to this new, drug-free lifestyle. I might be short with you or even i-insulting…” Dan paused as a lump formed in his throat, but 90s Kid rubbed his back soothingly until he could go on. “If I… I do say something insulting or mean to you, Kid; please know I don’t mean it. I would never want to hurt you, sweetie, cross my heart and hope to die. Please remember that I love you more than anything, and please don’t be too hurt if I… I…”

Dan started to tremble, so 90s Kid pulled him close so they could lie down on the couch together. He held Dan, stroking his hair and kissing him softly, until the older man finally started to calm down again.

“You don’t have to be afraid, Dan,” 90s Kid told him in a firm but gentle voice. “I, like, read all about this stuff in some books. I know you might act weird and different this time, but I totally know you love me. I’m not gonna leave you until you’re better, no matter what you say or do. You totally can’t get rid of me, dude.”

“Thank you, Kid.” Dan sighed, releasing a good deal of worry, and a few tears, which were gently kissed away by the younger man. “I feel so relieved to know that you won’t leave. I’m so used to people bailing on me when things get rough…” Though Dan didn’t say anything further, 90s Kid wondered if he was thinking about his roommates and neighbors, who had all decided to take extended vacations after learning about Dan’s decision to get clean. “Anyway, what am I doing getting all sappy when there are good times to be had.” Dan smiled and sat up, looking much more relaxed to 90s Kid’s relief. “So, for our first fun-filled activity, what do you say to watching some classic game shows, Kid? I just happened to procure several video tapes of ‘Starcade’ to watch during your stay and I bet you’re as eager as I am to start enjoying some classic arcade action.”

“Duuuude, I totally love ‘Starcade’!” 90s Kid exclaimed. “I wish they made game shows as awesome as that one today!”

“As do I, Kid, as do I. So, why don’t you just make yourself comfy out here while I go get us some snacks from the kitchen, sweetie?”

“Sure!” As 90s Kid reclined on the couch and waited for Dan to bring in the chips, salsa, and sodas, he took notice of his luggage still lying by the front door. Not wanting to be a messy houseguest, 90s Kid decided to bring his bags up to Dan’s room so the older man wouldn’t have to worry about them. He easily carried everything up to his boyfriend’s bedroom, but as soon as he pushed open the door, his jaw almost hit the floor.

“Dude! This place is totally trashed!” Clothes had been pulled from drawers and the closet and strewn about the room, small piles of toys and video cassettes littered the floor, as did the boxes they had once been stored in, the bed had been stripped bare, a few floorboards had been pulled up, and even the curtains had been pulled from the window. “What happened here?” 90s Kid wondered, too nervous to step inside lest he step on something important.

“Oh shoot, you saw it.” 90s Kid turned to find Dan standing behind him, blushing a bit and rubbing at the back of his head. “I was hoping to have cleaned all this up before you came up here, Kid, but I guess that was wishful thinking.”

“Dan, are you saying you trashed your room?” 90s Kid asked in disbelief. Dan nodded. “But why, dude?”

“I had to be sure I’d found it all,” Dan said, his gaze dropping. “I’ve been stashing coke all over my room for years, so well at times that I’d even forgotten where it was until I stumbled upon it, and I needed to make sure I found everything so I could give it to Snowflame. If there’s even one measly gram of cocaine here, I know I won’t be able to resist it and I… I really don’t want to let you down, Kid.”

“As long as you try as hard as you can, then you’ll never let me down, dude.” 90s Kid smiled and wrapped Dan in another hug, feeling pleased with how much better he was becoming at comforting his boyfriend. Dan had done so much to make him feel safe and loved, especially during that whole ordeal with Holokara, and 90s Kid was eager to be there when Dan needed him most. “Let’s just clean this junk up and get back to ‘Starcade’, okay?”

“That sounds like a plan.” 90s Kid and Dan worked quickly to right the wrongs done to Dan’s room, and aside from the floorboards which 90s Kid decided could be hammered down later, the bedroom soon resembled a bedroom once more. 90s Kid wiped some sweat from his brow and smiled with satisfaction at their job well done. Only righting the trashcan was left. 90s Kid hurried over to fix it, but paused when he noticed the contents of the receptacle.

“Uh, Dan? Did you, like, burn something in here?”

“Yes,” Dan easily replied. “Mostly phone numbers of dealers and addresses where I could score, plus one especially deserving envelope.”

“Dude! You can’t just burn stuff in your house like that!” 90s Kid scolded. “That’s totally dangerous! When Linkara burns a comic, he always does it outside cuz it’s safer! You gotta promise me you won’t burn stuff inside your place again, Dan!”

Dan blinked at 90s Kid in surprise. Neither of them were used to the teen sounding so stern and 90s Kid briefly wondered if he’d crossed a line. Then he promptly rid himself of that notion, since Dan pulled him down into a passionate kiss.

“Mmm, I like that authoritative side of you, Kid,” he murmured against 90s Kid’s lips. “Maybe tomorrow I’ll run with scissors in front of you.”

“You’d better not, dude,” 90s Kid warned although he was barely containing a smile. “If I see any more bad behavior, I’m totally gonna punish you good.”

They ended up watching ‘Starcade’ a bit later that day.


	3. Chapter 3

For the first two days, things went swimmingly. Dan remained his usual cheerful self and offered several fun suggestions for the couple to partake in, from building houses out of his A-Team trading cards to proving he was quite the worthy opponent in games of Electronic Battleship and Thin Ice. On that second night, however, Dan had to end their video game tournament early when he was overcome with a splitting headache.

“S-sorry about this, Kid,” Dan said as his boyfriend shook out a few aspirin for him. He was laying on the couch without his glasses and rubbing his temples in short, clockwise circles to try and soothe the pain. He looked pale again, which made 90s Kid nervous, even though he did his best to keep calm.

“It’s fine, dude. We have been playing since noon, so it’s, like, not surprising that your eyes would get scrambled from those 64-bit graphics.”

“Yeah.” Dan swallowed the pills before 90s Kid could even ask if he wanted water, but he didn’t seem any more at ease an hour later. “Kid, would you mind too terribly if I turn in now? My head is killing me and I don’t even think a ‘Manimal’ marathon could cheer me up right now.”

“I don’t mind, Dan. I think I’ll turn in too. I totally want to get up early for cartoons tomorrow anyway.”

90s Kid helped Dan up the stairs and into his pajamas before the two climbed into bed together. While 90s Kid turned to cuddle against his boyfriend like they usually did, Dan remained still, his eyes wide open and focused on the ceiling. After a few minutes of clinging to him like a ragdoll, 90s Kid started to feel awkward. “Um, y-you want me to let go, dude?”

“No, this is fine.” Dan didn’t seem interested in hugging him back, but 90s Kid didn’t want to further upset his headache by moving so he remained still. Eventually he drifted off into a restless sleep that didn’t last long. When 90s Kid awoke again, it was 1:03 in the morning, and he was alone in the bed. A small wave of panic swept over him, but 90s Kid forced himself to keep calm. Maybe Dan had gone to the bathroom, or needed a midnight snack. There was no need to assume he had done something drastic.

Fifteen minutes passed and Dan didn’t return. Feeling extremely worried now, 90s Kid finally got up to search for the older man. A quick journey through the house brought him no results. 90s Kid was ready to pick up his skateboard and cruise through the neighborhood in search of his boyfriend when a flash of white in the backyard caught his attention.

“Dan?” 90s Kid stepped out into the chilled night air and moved closer to a figure lying face-up in the grass. Dan was staring upwards again, this time at the inky sky, a Walkman clutched in his hands and giant headphones covering his ears. 90s Kid settled down beside Dan, not saying anything but making his presence known by resting his hand lightly atop Dan’s. Moments later, clammy fingers curled around his.

“Have I told you about my favorite song?”

90s Kid blinked at the question before nodding, since it was a well-publicized fact that Dan loved ‘Take on Me’. He wasn’t sure Dan had seen his response, since he was still gazing upwards, where dark clouds wafted over the moon and stars, but Dan continued speaking as if he had.

“I could listen to that song all day and all night, every day and every night,” Dan said, his voice soft but somewhat gravelly. “I love it so much that I recorded three whole cassettes of only that song, so I could listen to it over and over without having to rewind. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. Those tapes have really helped me out when I’ve been feeling bad.”

“Do you feel bad now?” 90s Kid couldn’t help asking, concern quickly rising within him. “Is it your head still, dude?”

“Yes and no.” Dan’s fingers tightened even more around 90s Kid’s, but he didn’t move. “My head is killing me and my throat feels like it’s stuffed full of cotton, but that’s not why.” With his other hand, Dan reached into the pocket of his pajamas and pulled out his cell phone. He held it above his head for a moment and it glinted thanks to the few rays of moonlight peeking out from behind the clouds. “I remembered that I had a number in my phone. A number belonging to a guy, Tommy, who could always score me something when I needed it and I… I called it.”

“You-” 90s Kid started to say before he was silenced as Dan lowered his arm and shifted in the grass so he could look into his face.

“I hung up before it even rang once, but I called it. And then I called it again, and again. I hung up every time, but I couldn’t stop my fingers from hitting redial. I… I never realized just how weak I am,” Dan said, a choked laugh bursting from his lips as if this realization were somehow amusing. “I guess my old gym teachers were right, there isn’t one ounce of strength to be found in me.”

“But… you didn’t actually call him, right?” 90s Kid said slowly. “So that means you were, like, strong enough to stop yourself. That’s not bad, Dan.”

“It’s not good either,” Dan replied, although his eyes flashed momentarily with what the teen thought was pride. 90s Kid grunted softly when he felt the phone being pressed into his chest. “Take this, Kid. Take it from me. I can’t be trusted with it, so please just… take it away.”

“Okay.” 90s Kid slipped the phone into his own pocket before turning back to Dan. “Dude, you’re shivering,” he said, cupping a warm hand over Dan’s cool cheek in concern. “And you’re totally freezing. Come on, let’s go back inside. You showed me how totally weak you are not, so now you should rest, so you can, like, be even not weaker tomorrow.”

“I wish I could think like you,” Dan murmured as the strong arms of his boyfriend encircled his body and helped him into a standing position. Normally 90s Kid would have rebutted this statement, since aside from occasional decade disputes, he and Dan did think in very similar manners, but he knew that what Dan meant now was something different, something deeper. If Dan was doubting himself, than 90s Kid would only have to work harder to make him realize just how much strength he had.

\------

Unfortunately, 90s Kid plan was not meant to be quite yet, since Dan was overcome with extreme fatigue for the next four days. He spent over half of each day sound asleep, and the other half dozing in and out of a state of exhausted lethargy. Dan couldn’t walk around or really get up on his own, and his gift of gab was also muted to a few grateful groans when 90s Kid carried him to the bathroom and forced a bit of nourishment down his throat. Dan was too tired to chew during these days, so 90s Kid satiated him with a constant supply of soup, ice cream, and juice.

It was a bit strange to treat Dan like a toddler, but 90s Kid soon grew used to feeding him meals and helping him change into fresh pajamas. What he never quite grew used to was the time he had to himself when Dan was sleeping. 90s Kid whizzed through the comic books and video tapes full of his favorite cartoons he’d brought within the first day of Dan’s fatigue, and then was left with the task of entertaining himself.

At first, he turned to his sketchbook. Normally 90s Kid loved drawing pictures of Dan, especially when he was smiling or sleeping peacefully, but at the moment his boyfriend’s face was drawn and pale, his breathing somewhat labored despite his lack of movement, and his whole body uncomfortably tense even while resting. 90s Kid couldn’t even bring himself to sleep beside Dan during those four days let alone sketch him, and he was truly grateful for once that Linkara had asked him about bringing a sleeping bag. So he turned to other ideas that had been floating through his mind for a while, like the new extreme superhero team he wanted to create and the ‘Care Bears’/’My Little Pony’ crossover comic he would one day make. However, after filling countless pages with crossed out scribbles and colorful blobs that didn’t remotely resemble anything human, equine, or ursine, 90s Kid resigned himself to the fact that his inspiration was, like Dan, dormant for now.

His next idea was to entertain himself with video games, but save the few they’d been using earlier, which 90s Kid had already beaten, Dan seemed to have packed the rest away in one of his many boxes. 90s Kid didn’t feel like rustling through the mess and most likely waking Dan up unnecessarily.

“Maybe I could just, like, teleport home and pick some up,” 90s Kid wondered to himself as he paced back and forth down the hallway in front of Dan’s bedroom. He liked keeping active when he could, since it was too cold to skateboard or do much of anything outside. “If I just go home for an hour or so, I could totally get some more stuff. But is it okay to leave Dan alone that long?”

90s Kid paused in front of the door before slowly opening it and peeking inside. Dan was asleep, of course, but his face seemed awfully red for some reason. 90s Kid tiptoed over to him and pressed his hand against his forehead, frowning when he realized how warm his skin was. That was it then. If Dan had a fever, there was no way 90s Kid was leaving him for even a minute.

Feeling focused once again, 90s Kid hurried downstairs to find some medicine that would help Dan recover. As he looked through the medicine cabinet, he also noticed how dirty the bathroom seemed, and swiftly decided on the next task that would occupy him.

On the fourth day of Dan’s hibernation, after every bit of the house had been vacuumed, washed, and safely put away, 90s Kid collapsed onto the couch and sighed. He should have felt satisfied – the house was spotless and Dan’s fever had finally disappeared. Instead, he felt only boredom and extreme loneliness. 90s Kid hadn’t genuinely talked to another person in a few days and he was starting to miss human interaction. After staring up at the ceiling for a while, 90s Kid eventually looked at his cell phone, which was lying on the coffee table beside him. He reached for it and hesitated momentarily before dialing.

“I’m very busy, so make this quick!” a familiar voice snapped into the phone. 90s Kid winced and folded his legs under his torso.

“H-hey, Linksano dude, it’s just me. Sorry for bothering you and junk, I totally didn’t know you were busy.”

“90s Kid? Oh, no, you aren’t bothering me!” the scientist insisted, his voice softening. “I’m afraid I forgot to check who was calling before answering, so I thought you were another one of those inane telemarketers or something. I’m quite pleased to be hearing from you, though. How is your stay with your paramour going? Well, I’d hope.”

“Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, being here with Dan is totally awesome,” 90s Kid replied once he figured out what Linksano was asking.

“Splendid! I assume you’re spending lots of quality time together, yes?”

“Um, yeah, sort of,” 90s Kid said, fidgeting slightly on the couch as he tried to shift into a more comfortable position.

“What do you mean?”

“Like, we’re not really hanging out a lot right now, though, cuz Dan’s, uh, really sleepy lately. So he just kind of sleeps all day and I… don’t.”

“I see,” Linksano said. “Extreme fatigue is a normal part of the recovery process, 90s Kid. When Dan was intoxicated, he most likely expended copious amounts of energy without resting properly to recover his depleted reserves. His body is making up for this prior taxing behavior by forcing him to slumber for long stretches of time.” 90s Kid nodded at his words. Even though he knew all this information from the books he’d read, hearing Linksano helped it to feel more real. “It may seem difficult, but I assure you, 90s Kid, this phase will not last long.”

“It totally seems long,” 90s Kid mumbled.

“Well, for how long as he felt fatigued, 90s Kid?”

“A couple days now.”

“Hmm. Has he shown any other indications of illness or injury?”

“He did have a fever at first, but it’s gone now.”

“Hmmm.” 90s Kid was really starting to dislike that noise. “That does sound a tad worrisome. Alright, 90s Kid, if Dan still seems exhausted and weary tomorrow, then call me again and I shall come over to examine him. I doubt there is anything seriously wrong, but it’s never a bad idea to check.”

“Thanks, dude. That totally helps me,” 90s Kid told him, feeling as if a weight had been removed from his chest. “So, uh, you wanna talk or something? I’m totally bored now, so I’ll listen to whatever, even your boring science junk. Uh, I-I mean, your awesome science junk!”

“As tempting an offer as that is,” Linksano said, voice dripping with sarcasm, “I actually do have an experiment I must return to, 90s Kid. Apologies, but I won’t be able to speak with you for much longer.”

“Oh. That’s cool, dude.” 90s Kid sighed again and started looking around Dan’s living room, searching for something to keep his interest.

“But I could put you on with one of the others,” Linksano offered. “They’re upstairs making all sorts of noise, and I’m sure one of them can spare some time to chat with you.”

“Uh, who’s there?” 90s Kid asked uncertainly, since he really wasn’t in the mood to be grilled by Linkara at the moment.

“Hold on, I’ll check.” There was a thumping sound then, as Linksano traveled up the stairs from his lab to the ground floor of the base, before a blast of music made 90s Kid pull the phone away from his ear. “Must you play that infernal game at such a high volume?” Linksano screamed. Thankfully, the noise was quickly muted and 90s Kid could return the phone to his ear just in time to hear a question directed at him.

“That you, Junior?”

“Hey, Harvey-dude,” 90s Kid replied, before another song started to blast through the ear piece. “Sounds like you guys are having a killer party.”

“Nah, nothing like that. The Kid and the ninja are having some sort of video game dance-off is all while the robot and I have been betting on them.”

“I wouldn’t call it betting when you have no chance of winning,” Pollo chimed in.

“Pollo, you traitorous jackass!” Linkara’s muffled voice came from off in the distance, causing Harvey to laugh.

“Don’t count out the Kid just yet, Blue. That ninja’s gotta get tired sooner or later.”

“Damn it all!”

“Face it, Harvey, it won’t ever be later,” Pollo replied. “Now pay me my ten dollars.”

“I don’t even know what a robot needs money for,” Harvey muttered. 90s Kid couldn’t help giggling at this exchange. Part of him wished he were back home, playing games and having fun with his friends. A small, wistful sigh slipped past his lips, which Harvey must have noticed. “I’m taking a smoke break for this round, Blue. We’ll go double or nothing when I get back.” Moments later, the other end of the line grew quiet again, save for Harvey’s soft voice. “You doing okay out there?”

“Huh? Oh, y-yeah, I’m totally okay,” 90s Kid was quick to answer. He didn’t want the others thinking he couldn’t handle this on his own, since he totally could.

“You sure about that, Junior? It’s a tough thing to get through, no matter how strong you are. There’s no shame in feeling down once or twice.”

“I’m fine,” 90s Kid insisted, although his voice lacked conviction. “It’s just…I guess I just miss my room. And my stuff. You know.”

“Yeah, I think I do.” There was a click on the other end as Harvey lit his cigarette. “The house isn’t the same now. Feels emptier. Not a good feeling for a house to have. Sets everyone’s nerves on edge, you dig?”

“It really feels different there?” 90s Kid asked, his voice small and scared, as if he couldn’t believe that fact could be true.

“Course it does. A house don’t feel right when the people who belong there are gone.” 90s Kid was eternally thankful that Harvey took that moment to exhale a puff of smoke, since it distracted from the soft whimper that slipped past his lips. “It must be the same over there,” Harvey continued after another short drag. “Crockett’s home is missing most of its owners. It’s gotta be feeling empty, lonely, miserable, really.”

“Yeah,” 90s Kid sighed. He was overcome with another wave of guilt over his desire to leave when he knew there would be no one left to watch over Dan.

There was another soft exhalation of breath from Harvey’s end. “What am I saying? Crockett’s place can’t be miserable, not when its got one of the bravest, strongest, most loyal tenants a house could ask for. Maybe it can’t show you how much it appreciates your patronage now, Junior, but I know that one day you’ll see just how much good you did for that old shack.”

“D-don’t call Dan old, dude,” 90s Kid laughed in between sniffles. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand before unleashing a few relieved giggles. “Not when you’re the oldest out of everyone.”

“Low blow, Junior,” Harvey replied, though 90s Kid could hear the amusement in his voice. “Anyway, I gotta be getting back to the game. I think the Kid needs a pep talk, or else I’ll be up to my elbows in debt to that robot.”

“Okay. I totally should go too and, like, start making dinner.” There was a small pause on the other end of the line and 90s Kid almost thought they’d been disconnected.

“You…are cooking dinner, Junior? Should I alert your local fire department?”

“Shut up, dude! I can totally cook!” 90s Kid said, pouting slightly. “Dan showed me how to boil water and use the frying pan, so I can totally make, like, spaghetti or grilled cheese sandwiches or eggs!”

Harvey whistled, impressed. “I’ll have to test out these dishes myself before I can fully believe you, but that sounds like some good work there. I knew Crockett would come in handy soon enough.” 90s Kid giggled once more and was about to protest this, but Harvey laughed as well, which set them both at ease. “So, I’ll see you around, Junior.”

“Yeah. See you, Harvey. And thanks a ton, dude.” 90s Kid hung up the phone and set it back on the coffee table. He stared up at the ceiling once more, his boredom and loneliness replaced with happier feelings, before getting up and heading into the kitchen.

\----

The moment Harvey walked back into the living room he almost collided with Linkara.

“Whoa! Sorry about that, Kid. Excuse me while I return this to the doc.” Harvey disappeared down into the lab for a moment before returning to once again find Linkara standing directly in front of him. Harvey gave him a blank look. “Something I can do for you, Kid?”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were talking to 90s Kid?”

“Linkara, are you ready to go?” Pollo asked as he perched on the young man’s shoulder. “Ninja-Style Dancer is already choosing the next song he will defeat you at.”

*I hope you are in the mood for some Latin rhythms.* Ninja-Style Dancer proclaimed from his spot on the game mat.

“Uh, would you two mind if the Kid and I took a quick break?” Harvey asked, placing a hand on Linkara’s back and guiding him in the direction of the stairs. “There’s something we need to discuss right now, so just give us a few minutes, will you?” Once the others had agreed, Harvey and Linkara were able to enter the singer’s bedroom, shutting the door behind them for privacy. While Harvey settled into one of his most comfortable chairs, Linkara remained standing, arms crossed, body tense.

“Kid, would you try and relax a little?” Harvey asked with a gesture of his head toward the bed, indicating Linkara should sit.

Linkara didn’t move. “Will you answer my question?”

“I didn’t tell you because I didn’t think of it,” Harvey replied with a shrug. “I got the phone really suddenly from the doc and I didn’t know who was calling at first, and then I guess it slipped my mind to tell the rest of you. If it helps, it’s not like Junior asked to speak to you.”

“What if I wanted to speak to him? Did you ever think of that?”

Harvey narrowed his eyes slightly, not enjoying this harsh line of questioning from his boyfriend. “You’ve had plenty of opportunities to call him on your own, Kid. What was stopping you?”

Linkara narrowed his eyes in response. “I knew you wouldn’t approve of me checking in on him, since you seem to think I’m some sort of over-protective nutjob.”

“I never said that, Kid,” Harvey sighed, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. “I just don’t like it when you badger him with ridiculous questions about Crockett and what they do when they’re together.”

“Don’t you think I have a right to be worried about them?”

“Do you really think something bad is going to happen to Junior?”

“I… I just don’t know, Harvey!” Linkara exclaimed, unable to hold it in anymore. He started pacing back and forth across the floor. “I know Dan seems like a decent guy and that 90s Kid likes him a lot, but what do we really know about him? He’s been an addict for years but what if that isn’t everything he’s done? What if he gets 90s Kid caught up in something even worse than drugs? I know it sounds crazy, but I just can’t stop thinking about it! I know Dan said he wants to quit, but it’s not that simple. I’m happy that he’s trying to give his poor lifestyle up and that he’s finally trying to be responsible, but there are still so many things that can go wrong. I don't want 90s Kid to get hurt because of something stupid Dan says or does during his withdrawal. And what if he does manage to stop, but he just picks it back up again a month later? Is 90s Kid expected to go back over there and do this all over again? Is that going to be the rest of his life, just taking care of a pathetic drug addict?”

Harvey waited silently until Linkara had said everything he needed to and collapsed onto his bed before he spoke. “I know you’re worried, Kid. I understand your fears, believe me I do. I don’t want to see anything bad happen to Junior, especially not because of someone he cares so much about. But you can’t let your fears and worries drive you out of your coconut like this. Junior isn’t gonna be a Junior for much longer. He’s an adult who can make his own choices in life. Some of those choices we ain’t gonna like, but that’s just something we’re gonna have to deal with on our own. Locking away Junior and pestering him over what he does and who he sees is not a solution, Kid. It’ll push him away for good.”

Linkara groaned softly, his hands curling and uncurling into fists as he spoke. “I know. I know everything you’re saying is true, Harvey. I want to take your advice and not worry so much, but I can’t, I just can’t. I can’t stop thinking about Dan doing a line of coke and then 90s Kid doing one right after. It’s such a stupid, ridiculous thought, but it refuses to leave my brain.”

“You’re really hung up on this drug stuff, Kid.” Harvey held up his gold cigarette case and flipped it open. “You know anyone can have an addiction to anything. Look at me; you've seen me smoke a pack a day if I'm tense. You hit the bottle pretty hard yourself when a comic gets rough. But we're not bad people, Kid, we just need a crutch sometimes. Crockett might have been leaning on his crutch pretty heavily over the years, but he’s trying to stand up on his own two feet now. Can’t you have a little faith in him, Kid?”

Linkara pulled himself back up to continue his pacing across the room. “How can I have faith when those situations are completely different, Harvey? It’s one thing to drink a little or have a few cigarettes, but this is cocaine we’re talking about! That is a serious drug to become addicted to! Do you know how many people die once they’re hooked on that stuff? Do you know how few people manage to get clean and stay clean for the rest of their lives?”

“I think the number is higher than you imagine, Kid.”

“Oh, how would you know? It’s not like you were a frigging addict, Harvey!”

Harvey’s lips twitched and he turned away, lighting himself another cigarette. Linkara paused his pacing and turned to him, watching his boyfriend fidget with his cufflinks and diligently trying not to meet his eyes. He stared in disbelief for a moment. “Harvey, you…” Harvey looked to him and sighed, running a hand over his face.

“It was a different time, Kid. Back in the fifties nobody knew just how dangerous that stuff was. All we knew was that it kept you up and kept you going. There were times when I was so exhausted from doing three shows a night at the Sands that I had to sniff some out in my dressing room just so I could make it though my set.” Harvey leaned back in his chair and took a long drag of his cigarette. “Once it started catching up to me, I gave it up cold turkey. Boy, I can tell you, it was really rough on me. That's part of the reason I go so hard on the cigarettes, Kid, I need something to keep me sane. I’d say they’re doing their job.” He took another puff and slowly blew out a ring of smoke. “Look, the moral of the story is, I once was a dirty addict just like Crockett, but I managed to stop. I haven't touched the stuff in years, and I never will again.”

Linkara stared blankly at his boyfriend, trying to take this all in, to comprehend it. Harvey had been an addict once upon a time? The words sounded surreal as they swam through Linkara’s mind. He had always secretly judged people like Dan and Snowflame for being so weak as to allow drugs to control their lives, but how was he supposed to feel knowing that Harvey had once been just as weak?

No. It was different, completely different. Harvey hadn’t been weak. He wasn’t using drugs to escape from reality like most addicts, he was just trying to get through a show. It was just like taking an energy drink nowadays. And like Harvey had said, the times were different back then. No one really knew how bad drugs were or how addictive they could be, right? It was the same way with cigarettes, and how no one knew how deadly and addictive they were until years later. If Harvey had known what coke could do to you, he would never have started using it, and he had stopped as soon as he knew how harmful the substance was. Of course he’d stopped. Harvey was strong, so it must have been easy for him to stop. It wasn’t the same situation as Dan’s at all. He wasn’t like Dan at all. He wasn’t. He wasn’t…

“Kid?” Linkara blinked and realized he’d been zoning out for a good five minutes. Harvey was watching him expectantly. Linkara quickly lowered his gaze and turned around.

“It’s almost time for dinner. We should get back down there before the others start wondering what happened to us.” He headed for the door, reaching out to grab the knob.

“What about Junior? Are you still worried?”

Harvey frowned when Linkara didn’t turn back to him as he answered. “I just don’t know anymore, Harvey. We'll see what happens. We’ll see what Dan does. If he manages to keep clean, then I…I'll trust him.” It didn’t sound very convincing, but Harvey didn’t remark upon that. “But if it seems like he’s losing control and getting up to his old tricks again, I’m not going to be able to sit back and do nothing.”

Harvey stubbed out his cigarette and stood up, smoothing out the wrinkles from his suit. “I understand, Kid. Trusting an addict’s one of the hardest things a person can do. I’m not surprised that you’re struggling with the concept.” He walked over to the door and placed a hand on Linkara’s shoulder, watching impassively as he tensed under the touch before pulling back. “For what it’s worth, I’m betting that we can trust him.”

Linkara glanced over his shoulder at him. “You haven’t been winning many bets lately, Harvey.”

Harvey stared into Linkara’s eyes before brushing past him. “Maybe I haven’t been putting my faith in the right person."


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, 90s Kid awoke to the delicious scents of chocolate and cinnamon wafting through the living room.

“Huh? What smells so good?” he murmured as he rubbed his eyes and climbed out of his sleeping bag, slipping on his hat and sunglasses as he did. A noise in the kitchen drew his attention then and 90s Kid jumped to his feet at once. What was that? Had Dolly come home early to make breakfast? His stomach rumbling hopefully, 90s Kid hurried over to peek into the kitchen and he almost shrieked at what he saw.

“Awww man, this place is wrecked!” It seemed that every dish had been pulled from the cabinets and now littered the counters, table, and even the floor. Most of these dishes were covered with colorful goop, smudges of sugar and chocolate, or strangely-shaped baked goods, as were the counters, table, floor, and even the walls themselves. 90s Kid gaped at a brown, fudgey hand-print staring at him from the door of the refrigerator before a hand on his shoulder made him leap three feet into the air.

“Morning, sleepy head! Sorry to startle you, but I have to make sure my muffins don’t burn!”

90s Kid whirled around as Dan walked past him and over to the oven, where he pulled out a tray of muffins which hadn’t risen completely. “Oh darn it. I guess that wasn’t the right recipe either,” Dan sighed as he set the tray down on a chair and pulled off his oven mitts. He just barely had time to set those on a different chair before he was pulled into an enormous bear hug.

“Dan! You’re awake! Oh, dude, I thought you were never gonna stop sleeping!” 90s Kid held Dan closely to his chest and nuzzled his cheek until he heard the older man chuckle.

“Okay, Kid, I’m happy to see you too.” Dan pecked 90s Kid on the lips and gave him a quick return hug before wiggling out of his grip. 90s Kid noticed that his eyes seemed a bit red and there were red scratch marks on his arms and neck, but he was so thrilled at seeing Dan out of bed that he didn’t comment on them at the moment.

“So does this mean you’re feeling awesome again, dude? You’re not still tired?”

“Kid, right now I don’t think I could sleep if I wanted to,” Dan replied with a grin. He searched the kitchen for a moment before picking up a bowl of white icing. “Alright, that should have been enough time for the cupcakes to cool. Excuse me, sweetie.” Dan stepped past 90s Kid again and walked over to where several cupcakes were arranged on a serving platter.

“Uh, Dan?” 90s Kid asked after watching him work happily for several minutes. “So, uh, wanna tell me what’s up with the baking? And, like, what happened to the kitchen?” he added, glaring once again at the handprint on the fridge door as if it were trying to wave happily at him.

“Oh, that.” Dan paused to scratch at his neck for several seconds. “Well, Kid, when I woke up, which was just as the sun was rising I’ll have you know, I had this hankering for cinnamon buns, so I came down here to see if we had any in stock. Turns out we didn’t, so I decided that making my own couldn’t be too hard. I didn’t have a recipe, but what more could you need than flour, milk, sugar, and cinnamon? Well, a lot, as it turns out, since my first two batches came out like that.” Dan pointed to a pizza tray covered in small, flat pound-cake looking things. “But they were enough to suit my cinnamon craving, and once I’d finished eating a few, I realized that baking sure had been fun. So I found a cookbook I’m presuming belongs to Dolly and started baking some other things, which is what has led us to this very moment.”

Satisfied with his explanation, Dan licked a bit of frosting from his fingers before returning to work on his cupcakes. 90s Kid surveyed the chaos before him with slight dismay, recalling a similar mess he’d made back at the base not long ago which had led to Linkara snapping at him, and felt he understood their esteemed leader somewhat better, but he tried to stay positive for Dan’s sake.

“Well, uh, it’s awesome that you found a new hobby, I guess. I just wish you, like, could have been a bit neater, dude, since I just cleaned this place yesterday and – did you just roll your eyes at me, Dan?”

“What? No.” Dan paused again to scratch violently at his left forearm. “Look, don’t worry about this, Kid, I’ll clean it up once I’m done with this, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.” 90s Kid continued to watch Dan as he worked, a strange feeling settling into his stomach. He was sure Dan had rolled his eyes at him and even though he wasn’t pleased with being dismissed like that, he was even less pleased with Dan seemingly lying to him. But no, Dan wouldn’t do that. 90s Kid shook his head and reassured himself that the older man never could do something like that, his eyes just must have been playing tricks on him.

“It’s okay, dude, I can help get this place cleaned up again. I’ll just work on that and you keep baking, okay?”

“Whatever you want, Kid,” Dan muttered, too focused on adding sprinkles to his cupcakes now to pay much attention to anything else. 90s Kid hurried to pick the food up off the ground before he went to retrieve the mop and bucket from the closet and started working on the floor. As he mopped, his gaze continued to drift over to Dan, and he frowned as he noticed the older man kept stopping to scratch or to massage his temples, as if his head were killing him. After the fifth time doing so within a half hour, 90s Kid walked over and put a hand on Dan’s shoulder.

“Dude, you okay? Your head hurting you?”

“I’m fine, Kid,” Dan said, his voice strained as he tried to sound upbeat. “Just a little headache, nothing to worry about.”

“You want some aspirin, man? I’ve totally got more.”

“I… I don’t think I should. I don’t want to replace one addiction with another,” Dan said, bringing a handful of sprinkles up to his mouth for consumption.

“Dude, it’s totally okay,” 90s Kid insisted as he set the mop down. “Linksano said you could have some sometimes if your head hurt.”

“Kid, I-I really don’t want any.”

“Let me just go get some in case you-”

“I don’t want any, Kid! Would you just stop it?”

90s Kid flinched as if he’d been physically wounded by Dan’s words. It almost felt like he had been. Dan had never spoken to him in such a harsh tone before. 90s Kid stood stock-still, frozen in place by his boyfriend’s outburst, though his heart was pounding so fast it felt like a small motor had been placed in his chest. He quickly realized Dan was staring at him, also unmoving, an expression of alarm on his face. 90s Kid turned and grabbed for the mop.

“S-sorry, Dan. I didn’t mean to bother you. I’ll just, like, k-keep mopping, okay?”

90s Kid pressed the spongey-end of the implement to the floor, but dropped it again when thin arms encircled him.

“Oh jeez, Kid, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you, honest I didn’t! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” Dan heaved a trembling breath and started to tear up. “I didn’t mean to snap, I really didn’t. I just… I didn’t want you to know that I… I took all the aspirin in the house this morning before you got up. I just didn’t want you to be mad at me, Kid. I’m sorry! Please don’t be mad, Kid.”

90s Kid broke out of his stupor upon hearing Dan’s words and he quickly hugged the smaller man back. He was still hurt over being yelled at, so he focused on what made him angry instead. “You took all the aspirin, Dan? Dude, that was totally dangerous! You know you have to be careful with that junk! How many did you eat, Dan?”

“I-I don’t know. Maybe twenty or something, I didn’t count. M-my head just keeps hurting so much and I wanted it to stop, so I kept swallowing them and it never stopped hurting. I didn’t mean to, Kid! I didn’t mean to do that! I didn’t mean to hurt you.” 90s Kid felt the front of his shirt start to grow wet and he rubbed Dan’s back soothingly.

“It’s okay, dude, it’s okay. I’m not mad at you, okay? I’m just totally worried about you, Dan. You can’t just do stuff like that.” Dan nodded and continued clinging to 90s Kid, refusing to let go. “Dan, it’s really gonna be okay. I’ll call Linksano and he can tell us what to do next.”

“Okay, Kid. Okay. Just don’t be mad,” Dan whimpered, his face blotchy and tear-streaked. “I won’t do that again. I thought I could control it because I used to be good at controlling my coke levels, but I guess I can’t do it anymore. After ten years, I’m no longer in control when it comes to ph-pharmaceuticals.”

90s Kid couldn’t keep himself from going slack jawed upon hearing this. “Dude! Ten years? Man, I didn’t realize you’d done drugs for that long. No wonder it’s so rough on you…”

“I’m sorry.” Dan turned his head away, ashamed of himself, and the teen was quick to tighten his grip around him.

“Hey, relax, dude, I’m not here to judge you. You asked me for help and that’s what I’m here for. I’m totally proud of you for giving this up, Dan.” 90s Kid relaxed when he saw Dan turn back to him, a small smile on his face now.

“You’re really proud of me, Kid?”

“Uh huh!” 90s Kid nodded as he brushed some of Dan’s tears away. “Though I do wanna know something. Like, why are you stopping now after all this time, Dan?”

“The answer is standing right here in my arms,” Dan replied, causing 90s Kid to blush a bit. “I want to get healthy for you, Kid. I don’t ever want there to be a time when I’m out of control or unable to help you if you needed me.”

“I don’t think that’ll ever happen, dude,” 90s Kid said, his hands continuing to gently massage Dan’s back. “You’ve never been outta control around me before. You, like, even managed not to do it when we were staying here together those two weeks before Linkara came back, right?” Dan tensed up in his arms and fell very quiet. 90s Kid’s hands stopped rubbing. “…right?”

Dan pulled out of his embrace, turning away from him. “I’m sorry…” 90s Kid couldn’t help but feel a twinge of hurt upon knowing that Dan had most likely been high during a lot of that time when he had been none the wiser. “I snuck off for a few lines so I’d be able to keep alert when Holokara was haunting you. I’d never been a person people could depend on before. I-I never even had that many friends as a kid, because people could already see how useless I was. I didn’t want you to think that about me too, Kid. I couldn’t let you down, so I did what I felt I had to do, even though I knew you wouldn’t approve. And… and that’s not all.”

Dan closed his eyes and hugged his arms around his chest. “I… I did it a few times during our vacation too, Kid. I feel so ashamed admitting this, but I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted you to be happy and I was so worried something could go wrong, so I just needed a taste to take the edge off, that’s all. But-but it wasn’t a lot, Kid, I promise! It was actually such a small amount that once I got back here, I completely binged. That’s when I knew I had to stop. I was out of control. I didn’t want to be that person anymore.”

Dan turned back to 90s Kid, fresh tears in his eyes. “Please, Kid, I’m begging you. You need to keep me off this stuff. I can’t ever do this again. It’s just so hard… the cravings are endless, always eating away at me. They’re eating away at me right now, but I can’t! I can’t do it anymore! So please… please help me…” 90s Kid quickly hugged Dan once again, holding him upright as Dan sagged against him and wet even more of his shirt with tears.

“I’m totally here for you, Dan. I know it’s hard, but you can do it. We can do it, dude. It’s gonna be totally worth it when it’s done, I promise.”

\----

90s Kid did his best to keep Dan distracted and entertained for the next few days so he wouldn’t think about what was happening to his mind and his body. After a quick visit from Linksano, who administered a solution for Dan to drink which would neutralize the effects of the aspirin, 90s Kid continued cooking with Dan, since he seemed to truly enjoy it as a hobby. In a few days time, the kitchen was full of baked goods and pastries that would last the inhabitants for weeks, if Dan didn’t devour them all first, that is.

“Jeez, I feel disgusting,” Dan muttered one afternoon as he chewed on a homemade peanut butter cookie. He continued the habit of scratching himself all over and he’d also picked up a new one, where he kept looking at the clock every minute or so. “It feels like there are bugs crawling on my skin,” he muttered, shrugging off his jacket so he could scratch himself better.

90s Kid frowned at him in worry and reached out to help scratch parts of his back that Dan couldn’t reach. Dan tried to smile at him but it died before it reached the corners of his mouth. “I’m sorry you’re still feeling so sick, Dan. I know it’ll get easier in time, dude, so just hang in there. You’re doing totally great.” 90s Kid went to the fridge and brought him back a cold soda, which Dan immediately snapped open and chugged right down. “Whoa, you must be thirsty too, huh?”

“Sugar helps the cravings a little,” Dan told him, crushing the can within his fist. “Can you get me another one?” 90s Kid nodded, hurriedly bringing him another can.

“It looks like that’s all you have in there for now, dude. I’ll totally head to the store and get you more, okay?” The teen flinched slightly at the look Dan gave him in return. He was almost glaring at him, as if he held 90s Kid personally responsible for the lack of sodas in the house. Moments later it was gone, Dan’s usual calm expression back in place.

“Okay, Kid, that sounds like a plan. It’s probably for the better that you’re going to the store, since I can’t remember where my car keys are right now, and since I need more baking supplies anyway. Would you mind also picking up for me some sugar, white and brown, some butter, a few cartons of eggs, some peanut butter, of course,” he said with a smile as he shoved the last cookie into his mouth, “oh, and some vanilla, caramel, baking chocolate, and sprinkles of every color.”

“Uh, sure, dude.” 90s Kid watched uncertainly as Dan pushed the empty cookie plate away before moving the fresh from the oven chocolate cream pie in front of him. “Wow, Dan, you’ve got a sweet tooth that’s, like, even bigger than mine,” 90s Kid said in a weak attempt at humor when he saw Dan dig into the creamy concoction.

“As I said, sugar helps with cravings,” Dan said through a mouthful of pie.

“Yeah, I know. But you’re not supposed to eat only sugar, dude,” 90s Kid said in a slightly sterner voice. “I don’t think you’ve had anything healthy since I brought you that vegetable soup a couple days ago.”

“What’s your point?” Dan asked, still calmly enjoying his pie. 90s Kid’s frown deepened.

“Uh, that you should lay off the junk food for a bit and eat something healthy?”

“What are you, my babysitter now?” Dan asked, his eyes narrowing as his voice grew sharper. “Are you going to tell me next that it’s time for my nap?”

“N-no,” 90s Kid stuttered, feeling his heart rate increase again. “I’m just trying to look out for you, Dan.”

“That’s rich, coming from a guy who shovels down sugary snacks by the bucketful,” the older man retorted as he forked another piece of pie. Dan noticed 90s Kid staring at it intently and he smiled as he brought it to his lips. “Mmm, delicious.”

“That’s not funny, dude.” 90s Kid’s eyes narrowed into a glare, all traces of humor gone from his voice. “We’re not talking about me, we’re talking about you, and I think you totally need to lay off the sweets."

“Fine!” Dan threw down his fork and stormed out of the kitchen. 90s Kid sighed and set to work cleaning up the remainder of the dessert. There was no use in following Dan, since he seemed prone to pointless arguments and petty behavior lately. Even though 90s Kid knew his mood swings were another symptom of his withdrawal, it still stung whenever he experienced them, so he did his best to avoid Dan when his temper grew short.

“I’m going to the store now, dude,” 90s Kid called out before grabbing his backpack and skateboard, and heading outside. He was grateful that the closest grocery shop was only a few blocks away, since it meant he could easily bring back supplies. After purchasing what he needed, 90s Kid stowed as many bags as he could into his pack before carrying the rest in his arms. Instead of going straight home, though, 90s Kid took a quick detour through the park near Dan’s place and stopped to watch some kids as they frolicked about, chasing each other in excitement. Seeing them laugh and run around without a care in the world was such a soothing sight, one that kept 90s Kid out of the house for an hour longer than he’d expected to be gone. The sun was starting to set by the time he arrived.

“I’m home, Dan,” 90s Kid called out in a guilty voice as he carried his purchases inside the house.“Sorry I was gone so long, dude, I just totally lost track of the time. I’ll get to work on dinner right away.”

“There’s no need to worry about that, Kid, I’ve already taken care of it.” 90s Kid was surprised when a smiling Dan approached him and took several bags from his hands, but he quickly smiled back.

“Thanks, man. So you cooked something?” he asked as followed Dan into the kitchen.

“Nope, I ordered in. There’s a half a pizza left for you,” Dan said, gesturing toward the large box on the counter.

“Oh.” 90s Kid pursed his lips a little. Pizza wasn’t exactly what he’d had in mind when he’d said he’d wanted Dan to eat better, but at least he hadn’t finished the whole box, so 90s Kid decided to claim this as a victory.

“Thanks, dude, I’m totally starving.” As 90s Kid went to eat his dinner, he noticed Dan speedily putting the groceries away. “You can save some for me, Dan,” 90s Kid offered, but his boyfriend simply shook his head and kept smiling.

“You just sit right there and enjoy your dinner, sweetie. I can take care of this no problem.” Even though 90s Kid loved to see Dan smiling, this particular grin he bore seemed a bit…off somehow. 90s Kid wasn’t sure what perturbed him about it, but he found himself looking down at his food whenever Dan glanced his way.

Once he’d finished, Dan grabbed the empty pizza box before 90s Kid could even close the lid, and stuffed it into a trash bag. “Good, huh?” he asked. 90s Kid nodded.

“Yeah, it was totally yummy, dude. Thanks again for getting it. Tomorrow I’ll, like, cook you an awesome dinner to show my appreciation.”

Dan giggled in a strange, almost girlish manner that set 90s Kid on edge. “Oh, you don’t have to do that, Kid. You’ve already done so much for me that ordering you dinner is the least I could do. Now come on, let’s go watch a movie and snuggle on the couch together!”

“Uh, sure.” 90s Kid watched Dan latch onto his arm before he physically pulled him into the living room and down onto the sofa beside him. “Oof,” 90s Kid gasped as the older man pounced upon him and quickly peppered his cheeks with kisses. “D-dan! Hehehe, dude, I just ate!”

“Mmm, I’m sorry, sweetie, I just miss kissing you so much,” Dan murmured as he batted his eyelashes at 90s Kid. They were still a bit red, as was the patch of skin under Dan’s right ear where he kept scratching at it, so any normal seductive effect was neutralized. “I miss doing a lot of things with you, Kid,” Dan continued, teasing a finger along 90s Kid’s chest. 90s Kid let out a shudder before he caught Dan’s hands within his own and moved them away. “Awww, why’d you do that?” Dan pouted, jutting out his lower lip like a child would.

“Dude, seriously, I’m too full for this junk now,” 90s Kid said as he sat back up, Dan still pressed against his chest. He was about to ask if they could put any romantic activities on hold for the moment when he noticed something amiss about his things. 90s Kid was sure he’d rolled up his sleeping bag that morning, but now it lay on the floor unfurled, Tenderheart’s head peeking out from under the top cover. His sketchbook was also lying on the floor instead of on top of his duffel bag where he was certain he’d left it, a few stray pencils pooled on top of the cover. “Dan, what happened-”

Before he could finish his question, Dan pulled 90s Kid down for a passionate kiss. 90s Kid’s eyes widened in surprise, since Dan usually wasn’t this aggressive, but he soon gave in to the feeling of soft, warm lips pressed against his own.

“See how nice that was?” Dan murmured when they pulled apart. “Haven’t you missed doing that, Kid? I certainly have.”

“Y-yeah, I have too,” 90s Kid admitted, his cheeks tinting red. Dan chuckled softly and took his boyfriend’s hand.

“I really want to do more of this with you, sweetie, but I don’t know if I can.” 90s Kid tilted his head in concern at Dan’s sudden depressed expression. “You see, I’m worried about a friend of mine. He’s been real sick lately and I’d really like to check up on him, but the only place I have his number stored is my phone, so could you maybe give it back to me just for a little bit? Please, sweetie?” He batted his eyelashes again and 90s Kid felt his stomach convulse a little, though he wasn’t sure if that was because of the pizza, the look Dan was giving him right then, or the realization as to why his things seemed amiss.

“Your phone? But didn’t you want me to keep that away from you, dude?”

“I know, but now I really need it back, Kid.” Dan leaned in close and nuzzled his cheek against his boyfriend’s. “It’ll only be for a little, teeny-tiny bit, I promise. Pretty please, sweetie?”

90s Kid stared into the longing, almost desperate eyes of Dan for a solid minute before he nodded. “Okay, Dan. I’ll get it for you.”

“Oh, thanks so much sweetie!” Dan cried as 90s Kid stood up and walked over toward the bookshelf where he’d hidden the phone. He couldn’t wait for 90s Kid to return to the couch, rushing over to snatch the device the second 90s Kid had it in hand, and scampered out into the kitchen, his fingers flying over the buttons. 90s Kid remained where he stood, his eyes trained on the carpet, waiting for Dan to inevitably return. He did in less than 30 seconds, expression now furious. “What did you do, Kid? What the hell did you do?”

“I deleted the number of your drug friend,” 90s Kid replied. His voice was calm and it was taking every ounce of willpower he had to keep it that way.

“You did what?” Dan spat, clutching the phone so tightly his knuckles were turning white.

“I deleted it, dude. I know it was wrong to, like, do it without your permission and I’m totally sorry, but…I did it.” 90s Kid toed at the carpet with his sock and braced himself for the barrage of anger he knew he would receive.

“I cannot believe you, Kid, I just really cannot believe you!” Dan raged as he chucked the phone as hard as he could against the nearest wall. “You really do think I’m some helpless little baby who needs to be monitored and sheltered from the world for his own good, don’t you?”

“No-”

“You had no right to delete that number without permission!” Dan continued, refusing to allow 90s Kid a chance to defend himself. “Do you know how messed up and wrong that is?”

“I do-”

“This is just typical!” Dan spat, storming over to where his phone now lay. “I don’t know why I didn’t expect it sooner since you’re just like him! I’m sure you’re taught to control people’s lives like this by that jerk of a leader of yours-”

“Don’t say that about Linkara!” 90s Kid snapped, looking up for the first time and shuddering when he realized Dan was glaring at him.

“I guess this makes it official. You’ll always be on his side, Kid, no matter what.”

“Dan, no, that’s totally not true. I’m on your side, I swear-”

“What about at Thanksgiving? You believed him without even giving me a chance to explain!”

“I…I told you I was sorry about that, dude,” 90s Kid said, his head drooping once again in shame.

“And what else are you sorry about, Kid?” Dan asked, marching over to shove his now cracked phone into the teen’s face. “Are you sorry about this? About betraying my trust and treating me like a helpless baby?”

“You’re the one who betrayed me first, dude,” 90s Kid countered, pushing Dan’s arm away so he could return the shorter man’s glare. “You, like, looked through my stuff without asking and I know you totally don’t have a sick friend at all. You just wanted your phone so you could call your drug buddy.”

“SO WHAT?” Dan screamed, so loudly that 90s Kid flinched at the sound. “So what if I wanted to call him? Who the hell cares if I call him? You?” Dan jutted his finger into 90s Kid’s chest. “YOU? WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?”

90s Kid grabbed Dan’s wrists and lowered his hands, holding tight so Dan couldn’t escape his grasp no matter how much he tried to wiggle free. When he realized 90s Kid refused to release him, Dan grew still, slumping down a bit and panting heavily for several minutes as a wave of dizziness overtook him. When he’d regained some of his breath, Dan glanced back up at 90s Kid. He blinked several times and wobbled a bit until he determined that the shiny bits of light dancing upon his boyfriend’s cheeks were actually tears.

“I am Xavier Charles Smith. I am the weapons expert for Linkara’s team. I am the best skateboarder in Minnesota. I am the president of the Rob Liefeld Fan Club. I am the ‘What You See is What You Get’ dude. I am the 90s Kid. I am also your boyfriend. I love you so totally much and I would do anything to keep you safe. That’s who I am, Dan.”

90s Kid’s grip weakened enough for Dan to pull his hands free. He rubbed his wrists a few times before staring back up at the teen.

“Stay away from me, Kid.”

With that, Dan turned and walked away, moving slowly up the stairs and down the hallway to his bedroom, where he slammed the door with quite a bit of force.

When he was gone and the house silent, 90s Kid turned off all the lights, locked the doors and windows, made sure all the food was put away, and changed into his pajamas. Once he’d slid into his warm, comfortable sleeping bag and pulled Tenderheart Bear into his arms, 90s Kid buried his face into his pillow and sobbed.


	5. Chapter 5

Harvey sighed as he sank down onto the couch, a bowl of popcorn and a glass of Sherry on the table beside him. It had been a long day, filled with training exercises and several uncomfortable looks from Linkara. The couple hadn’t been spending much time together as of late and even though Harvey wanted to make things right, he didn’t quite know how. As much as he hated to admit it, Linkara was looking at him differently now, as if he didn’t quite know who the singer really was anymore. Harvey was starting to question the merits of his policy for being totally honest with the Kid if these were the results it produced.

Harvey looked up when the front door opened and watched as Linksano and Boffo strolled into the base.

“I must thank you again for a truly superb evening, Boffo,” the scientist remarked as he closed the door. “I do apologize again for being an hour late. You know how caught up I can get in isolating plasmid DNA!”

Harvey sighed and shook his head. Linksano seemed fated to breach every code of dating etiquette ever created.

Boffo signed something in response that must have been funny, since Linksano suddenly giggled, his cheeks growing pink.

“Oh m-my, I’d never thought of such as thing as compensation for rudeness, but if that’s what you’d prefer, I think it can be arranged.” Linksano continued to giggle as Boffo signed something else and Harvey quickly reached his breaking point.

“Ahem,” he cried as he cleared his throat. Linksano promptly jumped before whirling around to face him.

“Oh my! I hadn’t realized you were there, Harvey! I do apologize for disturbing you!”

“It’s fine, doc. Just keep it down. My movie’s starting in a few minutes.”

“Yes, of course we will! Boffo and I were just about to go upstairs so he might, um, sh-show me something. Yes. Alright, we’re off! See you in the morning, Finevoice!”

Boffo waved good night to Harvey before hurrying after the ever more giggly Linksano. Harvey sighed once again and reached for his cigarettes. Something told him this was going to be a long night.

Before he could light his smoke, though, the buzzing of his cell phone captured Harvey’s attention. “Hello?”

“H-hey, Harvey-dude? It’s, um, it’s totally m-me.”

“Junior?” Harvey straightened up on the couch. He had been anticipating another call from the teenager any day now. “How are things going over there? Everything okay?”

“C-could be better.” He heard 90s Kid sniffle on the other end of the line and his chest tightened.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“It’s Dan. I-I thought he was doing better cuz he stopped sleeping all the time, but then he kept itching and like, obsessively baking and eating junk food and stuff, and then I did something to help him and it made him r-really mad at me. I think he h-hates me now.” Harvey grimaced, knowing all too well what Dan was going through, and how much it must be hurting 90s Kid.

“I know it’s rough, Junior, but you’ve gotta believe me when I say that Crockett doesn’t hate you. Whatever mean or nasty things he said, it’s not really him talking. You know that, right?”

“What if…what if it really is him?” 90s Kid whispered, his voice shaky. “What if he really does want me to stay away from him forever? I-I don’t want to stay away, Harvey. I love Dan so much.”

Harvey closed his eyes as he heard 90s Kid start to cry on the other end of the line. He needed to count to a hundred and cool off before he teleported over there and socked Dan in the nose for making his kid cry like this.

“Listen, Junior,” he finally began in a soothing tone. “I knew a guy who used to be addicted to the same stuff as Crockett, and when he finally decided to get clean, he said some of the worst things you can imagine to people. It didn’t matter if they were his friends, his family, even his wife wasn’t safe from the garbage that spewed from his mouth. And then, when it was over, and the wacky dust was out of his system, he realized what an idiot he’d been and spent a whole month on his hands and knees begging the forgiveness of those he’d hurt. He told them that he’d never meant to push them away, that he’d just been out of his head with desire for more of the white stuff, and lashing out was the only way he could think of to battle the urges. Sure, it wasn’t the smartest way, but then again, this wasn’t the smartest guy.” Harvey briefly smiled when he heard a giggle from 90s Kid’s end. “Anyway, are you getting my point here, Junior?”

“Yeah, I am. I know that Dan’s not gonna be mad at me forever, and that he doesn’t mean the junk he says right now.”

“I’m glad you’re getting it,” Harvey replied, leaning back against the couch.

“Um, so, like, what happened to your friend, Harvey? Did his other friends and family forgive him?”

Harvey lit up a cigarette and took a long drag. “Yeah, Junior, they all did. I don’t know how this dumb son of a gun ended up so lucky, but that’s the way the dice rolls.”

“You shouldn’t call your friends dumb, dude,” 90s Kid couldn’t help scolding. He was still a touch sensitive about that specific insult.

“You’re probably right about that.” Harvey took another drag before he noticed Linkara was now standing a few feet in front of him. “Say, Junior, the Kid’s right here and I think he’d appreciate hearing from you too. You wanna talk to him?”

“Okay.” Harvey stubbed out his cigarette before wordlessly handing over the phone. “Hey Linkara.”

“Hey. You doing alright, 90s Kid? It’s been a while since I’ve heard from you.”

“Yeah, I know. Sorry about keeping out of touch, dude. It’s just been totally crazy over here.”

“Crazy?” Linkara asked, biting his lip. “H-how crazy is crazy, exactly?”

“Oh, well, Dan’s just been, like, having a totally bad time mostly,” 90s Kid explained. “It seems like he’s okay, then he gets bad, then okay again, and then he gets worse. It is totally not awesome for him right now.”

“That sounds tough,” Linkara said, avoiding Harvey’s gaze as he asked this next question. “Are you sure you don’t want to take a break for a day or so and maybe come home?”

“No way,” 90s Kid said immediately. “Dan didn’t leave me alone when I needed him, so I’m not gonna leave him alone now when he needs me. I just needed to talk to someone and make sure I wasn’t, like, freaking out too much.”

To Harvey’s surprise, Linkara smiled at this response. “I figured you’d say that. We can always count on you to stick by your friends when they’re in need, 90s Kid. Your loyalty and determination to help Dan are really showing me how much you’ve matured. I’m very proud of you.”

“Thank you, Linkara. You don’t know how awesome it is to hear that right now.” Linkara raised an eyebrow when he thought he heard a sniffle but chose not to ask about that. “I’d better go now. I think I should, like, check on Dan now. I’ll see you around, okay, dude?”

“Okay, 90s Kid. Stay safe over there.” Linkara hung up and handed the phone back to Harvey, who was still leaning back against the couch cushions. “Thank you.”

“No problem. You know, I haven’t said this enough to him, but Junior really is one brave kid.”

“Yeah.” Harvey glanced over as Linkara plopped down beside him.

“Something on your mind, Kid?”

“I want to apologize, Harvey.” Linkara looked down at the interlaced fingers in his lap. “After you told me about your past, I started looking at you differently. I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t seem to help myself. It was just such a shocking thing to learn. Well, not really that shocking if I factor in how glamorous people have made smoking and drinking look in the past, so doing drugs must have been in the mix somewhere. Anyway,” he continued, shaking his head so he wouldn’t go off on a tangent, “I wanted to tell you that I know it’s not fair to judge you for something you did long ago and which no longer affects your life now. So Harvey, I’m really sorry about how I’ve been treating you. Can you forgive-”

Linkara was cut off by Harvey pulling him close for a deep kiss which lasted several minutes.

“You had me at ‘I want’,” Harvey whispered, winking at the flushed younger man.

“You’re as eager as ever,” Linkara remarked, though he laughed when Harvey pulled him in for a second less passionate, but just as enjoyable smooch. “I’m just glad this turned out easier than I’d thought it would be.”

“I can’t rightly turn down the heartfelt apology of a loved one, Kid,” Harvey informed him as Linkara leaned against him and closed his eyes. He slid one arm around Linkara’s shoulders and squeezed gently. “Not when it would make me a hypocrite of the highest order.”

“So that story you told 90s Kid?”

“Completely true.”

“Huh.” Linkara fell silent, and Harvey knew he was mulling things over. “I’m glad you were able to get past your problem, Harvey,” he finally said. “I hope Dan can find the same strength you did to get by without a crutch.”

“He will, Kid,” Harvey said in a soft tone before he kissed Linkara’s forehead. “Trust me. I always bet on the right guy.”

\----

Dan padded down the stairs and was startled to find Dolly busily moving about the living room.

“Hello, my friend. What are you doing back so soon, and where are you going with all those boxes?” he finished, expression growing confused as he watched her carry an enormous stack of cartons outside.

“I’m getting everything ready for the move,” Dolly curtly answered, almost knocking Dan onto the floor when she walked out the front door. Dan grabbed onto the couch to steady himself.

“Move?”

“Of course, haven’t you heard?” Mr. Crabtree replied as he came inside to grab another pile of boxes. “Everyone’s getting out of this hellhole as fast as they can.”

“But…but why?” Dan asked, so utterly confused that his head was starting to ache.

“Why wouldn’t we?” Mrs. Crabtree asked as she came in to grab the lamp and the television. “Do you think we want to spend the rest of our lives with a disgusting drug addict like you?”

“Ouch,” Dan said, clutching now at his head and his stomach, which was also starting to churn. “But I’m getting clean, my friends. 90s Kid has been here helping me get it all out of my system.”

“Who?” Dolly appeared standing over Dan, suddenly two feet taller than he for some reason did.

“90s Kid,” Dan repeated. “You know, my boyfriend?”

“Boyfriend? Are you joking?” Dolly’s face slowly melted into Mrs. Crabtree’s. “Do you honestly think someone would ever love you, Dan?”

“What? Of-of course he loves me! He told me he did!” Dan’s knees gave way and he collapsed onto the ground, where a ten-foot tall Mr. Crabtree leered down at him.

“Dan, there is no 90s Kid. There is no one who could possibly love you. There is no one.”

“No! That’s not true! I – oh jeez!” Dan realized he was sinking into the floor, which had turned to sand, a pure white sand that drove him wild and terrified him all the same. “Help me! Someone help me! I’m sinking!”

“Isn’t that just what you always wanted, Dan?” ROB called from on high, in the furthest recesses of space. “To die in a pile of your precious cocaine, alone and unloved, just as you always knew you were?”

“No!” Dan cried, unable to stop from being pulled under. “Please, help me! Kid! Kid, help me, please!”

\-----

Dan awoke with a shriek and would have rolled off his bed if 90s Kid hadn’t been sitting beside him, holding him steady. Dan gasped and thrashed around a bit, knocking away covers that he feared would smother him, before he felt the teen place his hands atop Dan’s head, running his fingers through his hair.

“It’s okay, dude, it’s totally okay now. I’m here, Dan, I’m here now. You were totally having a nightmare, but it’s all gone now, okay?” Dan slowly reached up to rub his eyes before peering up into the concerned face of his boyfriend.

“Kid? Y-you’re still here? I thought…I thought you were gone.”

90s Kid shook his head. “Nope, I’m not gone.”

“But they said… the others said you were gone,” Dan choked out, his voice growing weak. “They said you were never here and that you never… never loved me.”

“Dan, that was a nightmare,” 90s Kid repeated, still running his fingers through the older man’s hair. “I’m right here and I totally love you.”

“You do? Even after I… I yelled at you and lied to you and treated you like you were nothing?” Dan asked, disbelief coloring his features. “How can you not hate me for doing all that to you, Kid? I… I hate myself… I’m so weak… and disgusting…”

Dan suddenly turned green and bolted up from the bed, running towards the bathroom with one hand clapped over his mouth. 90s Kid hurried behind him and watched as Dan flung himself to his knees, heaving up the nonnutritive contents of his stomach. He knelt next to him and rubbed Dan’s back, grimacing at the sight but refusing to let Dan go through this alone. After a few minutes Dan was empty, reduced to dry-heaving, and he leaned back against the shower door. 90s Kid remained at his side save one moment, where he stood up to prepare something. When he returned, Dan felt a warm washcloth being run over his mouth and face before he heard the flush of the toilet. He felt so dizzy and hot and disoriented that he could barely move.

“C’mon, dude. You need to lie down.” With that, 90s Kid gently picked him up and carried him back to his bed. Once Dan was tucked in, 90s Kid took a step away from the bed but stopped when he felt a weak tugging on the end of his shirt.

“Please don’t leave, Kid,” Dan said, barely able to keep his eyes open right now. “Please don’t go. I’m sorry about what I said before.”

“You don’t want me to, like, stay away from you anymore?” 90s Kid asked, his expression neutral.

“No, never. I never wanted that, Kid,” Dan begged, his eyes starting to grow glossy with tears. “I know I don’t deserve you after everything I’ve done. I lied and manipulated you… I yelled and broke your trust… I even… oh God, you had to restrain me because I was out of control. I’m so sorry, Kid… I would have never, ever hurt-”

“I never thought you’d hurt me,” 90s Kid broke in, voice firm but still soft. “I just wanted you to hold still and listen before you, like, passed out cuz you were so mad.”

“I’m s-sorry… I’m so sorry…” Dan’s breathing began to grow ragged before he started pulling himself toward the edge of the bed. “I don’t deserve you… I don’t deserve anything g-good… I should just… go sleep in the y-yard.”

“Dan, no.” 90s Kid quickly sat back down and pulled him back toward the center of his mattress. “You’re not going out there and getting sick again, dude.”

Instantly Dan wrapped his arms around the teen, clinging to him so tightly 90s Kid could feel his heart race and his body quiver as he was overcome with sobs. “You’ve done s-so much for m-me, Kid. I’m so s-sorry I h-h-hurt you. I didn’t m-m-mean it before. I love you, Kid. I don’t want you out of my s-s-sight. I love you more than anything, Kid. Please… please s-stay with me.”

“I was planning on it, dude,” 90s Kid replied, rubbing soothing circles along Dan’s back before he bent down to kiss his forehead. “You don’t have to cry, Dan. I wasn’t gonna leave you. I was just gonna get Tenderheart for you to cuddle with.”

“I… I’d rather c-cuddle with y-you,” Dan struggled to say in between sobs. “I l-love you, Kid. I love you so m-much.”

“I know, dude, I know. I love you too.” 90s Kid didn’t mind repeating himself as many times as it took for the message to sink in with Dan. He was no longer worried or upset over what had transpired earlier because Dan, his sweet, wonderful Dan, was finally back with him, back where he belonged. 90s Kid held Dan all through that night, periodically stroking his back and hair, and always whispering kind, loving words to him.

“I really don’t deserve you…” Dan murmured in a quiet voice several hours later. 90s Kid blinked in surprise, having thought Dan had drifted off to sleep already, before he glanced down to his boyfriend.

“That’s not true, man. You totally deserve me. Remember the last time I stayed here with you for a totally long time?” Dan nodded. How could he possibly forget that horrible ordeal with the hologram? “I came over here completely lost and scared, dude, and you didn’t even stop to think about yourself. You just did everything I needed. I know I cubed it when I tried to do the same junk for you, but I promise from now on, I’ll, like, totally do everything you need to be happy and safe too, dude. So if I deserved you, then you totally deserve me. Okay?”

Dan smiled even more as 90s Kid rubbed softly at his cheek. His eyes slid shut and he managed to whisper, “You didn’t cube anything, Kid. I couldn’t be happier than I am right now. You’ve done everything I’ve needed too and I feel so honored, so blessed to have your love… the love of the greatest man in the world… Xavier Charles Smith.”

Dan opened his eyes in surprise when he heard a sniff of disdain and noticed 90s Kid had scrunched up his nose. “Ugh, dude, don’t call me that.”

“Why not?”

“Cuz that name is the most uncool, un-rad, boring name ever. I totally hate it.”

“Well I totally love it,” Dan replied, a soft giggle escaping when he saw 90s Kid roll his eyes. “But okay, I won’t call you that, Kid. I do want you to know, however, that it will always secretly be my favorite name in the world.”

“No offense, Dan, but that’s a terrible secret.”

Dan giggled again before nestling his head atop 90s Kid’s chest. “Okay, how about this one: I love you, Kid.”

90s Kid giggled as well while he pulled the covers tightly around the two of them. “Much better, dude.”

Dan sighed when he felt the warmth of 90s Kid’s arms settling against his sides and back once more, and closed his eyes as sweet slumber began to carry him away. “I…love you…”

\----

Two weeks had elapsed since 90s Kid had come to stay with Dan and things were finally getting back to normal. Dan’s sleep patterns had pretty much stabilized, and he wasn’t throwing up or getting splitting headaches anymore, much to their relief. The itchiness persisted at times, but 90s Kid always helped out when it grew too bad, even running baths for Dan to help soothe his irritated skin.

One afternoon, Dan looked up at 90s Kid with loving, grateful eyes as they cuddled on the couch to play video games and enjoy Dan’s latest batch of brownies, before he kissed him softly on the cheek. “Thanks again for coming over to help me, Kid.” 90s Kid smiled and kissed him back, pausing the game so he could put an arm around his shoulder. “I think the worst of this is finally over. It’s still hard to fight the cravings, but they’re not as bad now as they were and I think they should be growing weaker as time passes.”

90s Kid lifted his shades to look at Dan seriously. “Do you think you’ll, like, be able to stay off this stuff, Dan?” He didn’t mean to insult his boyfriend by doubting him, but Dan knew his suspicions were well-founded so he took no offense.

Dan nodded “I do. I know I can do it, Kid. Not alone, of course, but knowing I have your support really helps. I was also looking up addictions on the world wide web and I found out there are support groups for recovering addicts like me. There’s even a place downtown that holds meetings once a week. I think I might start going to them, Kid. That way I won’t have to bother you with this stuff all the time.”

“Dude, you never bother me.” 90s Kid slid his shades back down and hugged Dan close. “But that totally sounds like an awesome idea to me. I think you should go, Dan, and I hope those dudes and dudettes help you stay strong.”

“Me too.” Dan rested his head against 90s Kid’s chest. “It’s strange…it hurts not having the coke, but at the same time, I feel so much better now.”

“I’m totally glad that you’re happy, dude,” 90s Kid told him. “Uh, so, do you think you’ll be okay if I head back home this weekend?” He hated the idea of leaving if Dan didn’t feel ready, but he was also missing the base and his friends dearly. Fortunately, Dan kissed his cheek and nodded.

“Yeah, I think I’ll be okay, Kid. Dolly and ROB have already started calling to ask if the house is still in one piece. I know once they’re here, they’ll be able to keep an eye on me.” 90s Kid nodded, extremely relieved.

“Good. But dude, if you feel like you’re getting too twitchy, call me. I’ll come over and help you out again, okay?”

“Okay.” Dan pressed his lips to 90s Kid’s before returning his head to its comfortable position atop the teen’s chest. “From the bottom of my heart I want to thank you, Kid. You’ve really made me happier than I ever thought I could be. I’m so relieved that I didn’t push you away for good when I was acting like a monster. If I had lost you, I don’t know what I would have done…”

“Dude, don’t talk junk like that,” 90s Kid scolded, playfully poking Dan in the stomach to rid him of his sudden melancholy. “You’re not a monster and you’re not gonna lose me. Like I said before, you totally can’t get rid of me, dude.” Dan gazed up at him, ready to tear up, when from the corner of his eye, he saw 90s Kid snake out a hand to grab the last brownie. “That also means your stuff is totally up for grabs, man!”

“Give that back, you thief!” Dan cried, reaching out to poke at 90s Kid’s stomach this time, which eventually turned into a full on tickle war. Even though the battle ended with both parties surrendering, and the brownie was destroyed before anyone could enjoy it, Dan felt like he was on top of the world. No drug had ever even come close to this.


End file.
